Skip to main content

Board Passes Resolution for Fire Levy Lid Lift


Voters Will See Measure on August Primary Election Ballot

The Board of Fire Commissioners for Benton County Fire District 4 passed a resolution calling for a Fire Levy lid lift to hire more emergency personnel. The measure will be on the August 4 Primary Election ballot.

Call volumes have increased 78.3 percent for the Fire District since 2010 due to growth and an aging population that relies more on emergency services. The Fire District has a plan to meet this increase in demand for service in a way that minimizes impacts to taxpayers.

For example, it asked the community to fund a new fire station, which was approved in 2018. Building and equipping a new station can take two or three years. The next step is to hire additional personnel to meet the increase in demand for service throughout the District. Finding the right people – interviewing, testing and background checks – can take almost a year and would need to be funded through a lid lift. If approved by voters, the lid lift would take effect in 2021.

“Our need for additional personnel pre-dates the pandemic, but it’s really bringing it home to us now,” said Acting Chief Paul Carlyle. “We recognize this is a difficult time for many in our community and we are here to help. We train for this. We’re ready.”

Voters last approved a Fire Levy of $1.50 per $1,000 of assessed property value in 2014. That levy rate has fallen to $1.35/ $1,000 in 2020. Levy rates fall as property values rise to limit the Fire District to roughly the same amount of revenue per year. Lid lifts help an agency keep up with rising costs and the increase in demand for emergency services.

The lid lift resolution asks voters to return the Fire Levy to the previously approved amount of $1.50/$1,000. The additional cost would be approximately $3.75 per month for the owner of a $300,000 home. More information can be found on the Fire District’s website at www.bcfd4.org.

Acting Chief Paul Carlyle also is available to answer questions. He can be reached at pcarlyle@bcfd4.org or 509-967-2945.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Chief Bill Whealan Retires from Benton County Fire District 4

February 8, 2021 marks the official retirement of Fire Chief Bill Whealan from Benton County Fire District 4. Chief Whealan’s fire service career spans almost four decades, the last nine years of which he served as Fire Chief for the agency that serves 20,000 people in the city of West Richland and its immediate unincorporated areas. Chief Whealan moved to Benton County in 2011 from Hemet, Calif. where he served as its Interim Fire Chief. In total, Chief Whealan has 25 years of his career in chief officer level positions in Nev., Calif., and Wash. He says that one of his greatest accomplishments during this time is not having any firefighter deaths or serious injuries under his watch. “That’s what this is about. Saving lives and property and bringing your people through each call safely,” said Chief Whealan. “There’s no greater accomplishment than that.” While at Benton 4, Chief Whealan increased the standards of medical evaluations for emergency personnel that were credited with s...
Post a Comment
Read more

Letter: BENTON DISTRICT 4 CALL VOLUME HIGHER (Tri-city Herald 2/11/21)

We wanted to report back to our community about 2020 emergency call volumes for Benton County Fire District No. 4. In 2020, personnel responded to 1,686 calls, almost 5% higher than 2019. Emergency medical service (EMS) accounted for 67% of all calls. Benton 4 serves 20,000 people over 52 square miles, including the city of West Richland and its immediate unincorporated areas. We are independent of the city and county, and receive funding from a fire levy and an EMS levy paid through property taxes. In 2020, voters approved a fire levy lid lift to hire three full-time firefighters to respond to higher call volumes. These positions have been filled, and we’re seeing faster response times as a result. Voters also approved a bond in 2018 to build and equip a new fire station. That project is near completion, and we look forward to welcoming our community to the facility when it’s safe to do so. We appreciate the support of our community, and thank you for the opportunity to serve you and ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Another Clean Audit for Benton County Fire District 4

Benton County Fire District 4 passed its most recent financial and accountability audit by the Washington State Auditor’s Office. The Fire District is audited every three years to ensure compliance with laws, regulations, contracts, and grant agreements. “We welcome this scrutiny because it’s important our community knows that we are good stewards of their tax dollars,” said Fire Chief Paul Carlyle. Voters in the Fire District approved a bond in 2018 to build and equip a new fire station. That project is nearing completion, and the agency looks forward to welcoming community members to the new facility when it is safe to do so. Last fall, voters approved a fire levy lid lift to fund three additional full-time firefighters to respond to higher call volumes. Those positions have been filled as of February 1, 2021.  Benton County Fire District 4 has a long history of clean audits. The agency operates under a balanced budget and maintains adequate reserves. These strong financial...
Post a Comment
Read more